What you interested in RPGs and what keeps you interested?

[TheDoctor]

Just curious to see what got you hooked?

When I was little, my dad took me to a game convention that was mostly focused around D&D. For some reason, I was fascinated by the little metal miniatures on what looked to me like grid game boards.

I was too young to realize the difference between RPGs and boardgames which I loved.

Then Hero Quest came out- a boardgame analog to fantasy RPGs. I was fascinated by the board and all the little game pieces it came with. Again without having any familiarity with RPGs, I thought about how a character in Hero Quest might decide to do things not allowed by the rules. I started creating house rules for that game.

Then, I finally found a shop with a D&D beginner set. As you can see, it was a pretty natural transition to D&D. Although not as elaborate as hero quest, the D&D set had a playing "mat" and a bunch of little figures. To this day, I love anything with figures and boards or map tiles.

Today, the most attractive thing about RPGs as a gamemaster is storytelling. I really like generated an environ and plot for others to play in. But it's not my story, it's their story. And that's one of the most rewarding things.

So, what's your RPG story?
_________________
"We attack under cover of daylight. Yes it's the last thing they'll be expecting, a daylight charge over the minefield." - Arnold Judas Rimmer, BSC SSC

[garhkal]

What got me initially interested was hearing the stories my brother said about his games for 1e adnd, then getting a copy of the basic and expert boxed DND sets. What keeps me interested is the Camaraderie i feel gaming with friends and acquaintances at conventions, and home games.
_________________
Confucious sayeth, don't wash cat while drunk!

[Whill]

In elementary school I was only a player, and in my junior high group I was one of three GMs in the group (we took turns running for the other players' PCs). I'm guessing it was mostly just participating in common (nerd) interests with my friends back then. But starting in high school I became the primary GM of several groups of players, and world-building was a lot of fun for me.

But with Star Wars the number one greatest aspect for me became, and still is over 20 years later, story creation. So I can almost mirror the Doc above. For us, it is our mutual story (GM and PCs). Unless you play a totally improved game where every adventure just starts with the GM saying, "OK, what do your PCs want to do today?", the story starts with the GM. Of course, the PCs are the main characters in the story. I view the story as a stew where GM brings the base and every player brings ingredients, and we all mix it into the pot. Hopefully, it turns out good for everyone.

One-off adventures and episodic serials can be fun, but I prefer campaigns with multiple overlapping story and character arcs ending with a big climax that brings it all together. Over time new players grow to trust that what I bring to the table will usually be entertaining. I'm a very collaborative GM and involve the players in story planning, and the end result is almost always fun had by all and positive feedback. Most of my players and I inspire each other creatively, so the campaign's story is greater than the sum of its parts.
_________________
*
Site Map
Forum Guidelines
Registration/Log-In Help
The Rancor Pit Library
Star Wars D6 Damage

[TheDoctor]

[Zarm R'keeg]

I got the Introductory Adventure Set for my 13th birthday. It wasn't all that unlike the imaginary stories that my childhood friends and I used to come up with, and the story of that module really hooked me. (It remains a favorite because of the unique tone and storyline, wide variety in scope and setting, and generally immersive feel of working up from nothing to victory in the midst of an Imperial Occupation). I've always been a storyteller at heart, and the RPG gave me a chance to tell interactive, collaborative stories with feedback on the spot, as well as a fun chance to perform (bit of a camera ham, y'know) and joke around with friends. And because of those things, I doubt I'll ever stop being hooked; maybe one day, when my 9-month-old is old enough for the RPG, I'll even be able to finally get a reliable enough player-set that I can run through the entire epic story-arc that I always set up for each group and hardly get through the first segment of.
_________________
Star Wars: Marvels, the audio drama: www.nolinecinemas.com

Hard core OT, all the way!

[cynanbloodbane]

At 17 my then girlfriend got me the D&D 2nd ed core books for Christmas. I found a local group and loved it. I stared my current gaming group in 2001 with the Hackmaster RPG. A friend and I trade off GMing, frequently changing systems so we don't get burned out, and to cover each other on National Guard deployments. After almost a decade and a half our now teenage children have begun joining us at the table.
Gaming has been very, very good to me!
_________________
"Yes because killing the guy you always planned on usurping and killing anyways in order to save your own kid, totally atones for murdering a roomful of innocent trusting children." The Brain

[DougRed4]

I've always been a storyteller, and loved games from a young age. The summer before I went into high school (9th grade), a friend introduced me to D&D, and my mind was blown. The idea of something more than a board game, where you got to make infinite choices or go in any direction was just the coolest thing I'd ever heard of.

I very much agree that it's the collaborative storytelling that is the key. I often GM, as I love world-building and creating stories.
_________________
Currently Running: Villains & Vigilantes (a 32-year-old campaign with multiple groups) and D6 Star Wars; mostly on hiatus are Adventures in Middle-earth and Delta Green

[Thx1138]

When I was a little kid, I found a D&D beginners set in my grandparents house and ever since then I have been hooked on RPGs.